The Search In Seven Lands
by CiciBear8
Summary: It's been four years since Princess Lucia and the other Mermaid Princesses have disappeared and their precious pearls were found on the Search. Searching for a cure to heal her ill, bedridden mother, one mermaid's journey to the surface is more than she thought. The responsibility of becoming the new Pink Pearl Mermaid Princess is her fate, bringing everlasting memories.


A/N: Hi, everybody! I'm CiciBear8 and this is my first Mermaid Melody fanfic. I love Mermaid Melody and I think it is the best anime ever! I got inspiration for this story when my friend starting to watch it (after my recommendation). I know lots of readers and authors alike might not really like this story because of all the OCs and I understand that. This story might be terrible to some readers, so I greatly appreciate all the criticism I can receive! I hope you like this story!

**Disclaimer: I do not own Mermaid Melody. It belongs to Michiko Yokote and Pink Hinamori! **

* * *

"Aika," Nikora pleaded. "you can't possibly be thinking about going. Take it from me, the land is dangerous! Lucia was simply enough, but what will you do when they find out you're a mermaid?!"

Aika snapped back around, her long, platinum blonde ponytail swishing around her. "They won't find out I'm a mermaid." She stated in a confident voice. "Also, Nikora, I'm not just thinking about going to land, I will. I need to, or else she'll die." Aika ended her sentence in a solemn manner, looking down.

Nikora blinked and felt a twinge of guilt. "But Aika, you're still so young. Oh, the youth these days! They go off to land thinking it'll always be alright when their very lives are at stake!" Nikora exclaimed, minding the old times.

"I will be fine! Stop worrying. The least you can do is prolong her medications for a touch longer. I won't be back in a day, you know." Aika said, placing a small, seaweed wrapped journal, along with some mussel ink in her bag.

"Ah." Nikora nodded, staring at the blonde mermaid pack her items. "I'm very proud of you for doing this. You're all grown up and yet you have to leave."

"I have a completely eligible reason for leaving!" Aika protested, slamming a bubble blanket into her bag.

"I know." Nikora smiled and gently placed a hand on Aika's shoulder. "I really am proud of you. You'll come back with a cure for your mother for sure. I just want you to be careful because I care...a lot."

Aika turned around to hug Nikora, who was like an aunt to her. "Thank you, Nikora. I trust you with the well-being of my mother." Aika confided, grinning.

"I'm darn grateful that you do. Aika, you're like my daughter. I honestly don't want to see you go, so I've been making up excuses." Nikora chuckled, shaking her head.

"No one will find out who I am, promise."

"Okay, okay. Worrywart Nikora is done worrying. I'll allow you to go. Oh, and take this, it'll show you were Pearl Piari is. And I'll have an abalone escort you, if you'd like!" She handed Aika a paper.

"Nikora, I'm not a baby anymore!" Aika whined, flailing her arms around.

Nikora chuckled heartily. "Alright now, no need to get worked up! Abalones are very kind and are safely willing to guide mermaids to land all the time. We should be thankful for that. Are you sure you don't need an escort? They can be so much help."

Aika sighed, placing one of her last belongings into her bag. "I've never been to land before, but, I guess a nice abalone friend wouldn't hurt." She smiled as she closed her bag and slung it around her shoulder.

Nikora cheered in triumph. "I'm so glad, and besides, you really would've needed an escort anyways. I can call one of Madame Taki's kin right now, in fact." She offered.

Aika nodded and agreed. "Okay, I'm done packing. I'm ready to leave."

Nikora's eyes widened and she squeezed Aika tightly. "Oh my, never mind! Aika, you have to stay! Everyone will miss you so much! You can't leave!" Nikora complained, having a sudden change in thought as she couldn't even think of having Aika leave.

"Niiiiikooooraaaa!" Aika screeched, wiggling out of the purple-haired mermaid's grasp. "Why change your mind? I told you I'm definitely ready to leave!"

Nikora wiped tears from her eyes and inhaled sharply. "Alright, okay, I'm sorry. I think you can go now. I'll call Madame Taki's niece, Auri over. She's such a sweet thing, you'll be great friends." Nikora disappeared for a moment and came back with an elegant, shining gray oyster following her. "Auri, this is Aika. You know, Elite Counsel Leader Harumi's daughter," Nikora paused and added in a quiet voice, "the one that is in a coma."

Aika watched the abalone named Auri open its, well, mouth if you might call it that. Aika had not seen an abalone in four years, just before the Search took place. She had no idea abalones could talk and she was rather surprised as Auri began to.

"Oh, Nikora. Don't be rash. Of course I know that Aika here is Harumi's daughter." Auri seemed to say in a slightly bubbly voice.

Nikora laughed. "Mm. Just wanted to make sure. Auri, you seemed to forget so many things."

"Oh, you." Auri then turned to the shocked blonde mermaid. "Aika, now. I'll safely take you to land, and I'll even take you to Pearl Piari. I haven't been there in more than a decade, but lots of memories happened there. I sure remember it. I'm familiar with the human world, for sure."

"Auri," Nikora said in a warning manner. "remember that Pearl Piari has changed as time has took its toll. After I left, the building was placed in the good hands of my close friend, Mana. She'll take great care of you, Aika."

Aika opened her mouth to say something, but she was interrupted by Auri. "Ne, Nikora. Do you have any of Lucia's old clothes from when she was fourteen? I can't have Aika bare when we get to the surface. I, myself already have some suitable attire for our journey." Auri stated in a voice that was a mixture of amusement and worry.

Nikora sweat dropped. "I almost forgot! You know, Aika, when you get to land in your human form, you'll be, ahem..." Auri continued for her. "Aika, you'll be naked."

Aika blushed. "Ah! I need some clothes then!" She fretted, opening her bag and getting ready to pack all over again.

"Just a single pair. Mana will have plenty of other clothes for you at Pearl Piari." Nikora responded, rummaging through a chest. "Here." Nikora handed Aika a white tee with red sleeves and a red star in the middle, a denim skirt that went down to her thighs, and red, laced, knee-high boots.

"These are Princess Lucia's?!" Aika asked. She gaped as Nikora and Auri exchanged glances and nodded. "Eh?! But I can't wear her clothes! It's Princess Lucia's! Even if she isn't here, I couldn't possibly wear them!" She exclaimed, shoving them back into Nikora's arms.

"Huh? Why not? I'm sure she won't mind. Really, Aika. You have no choice."

"But...Princess Lucia...her own clothes...!" Aika reluctantly put the clothes into her bag with guilt. She loved the princess, and felt she wasn't worthy enough to wear these human clothes.

"Alright then, we ready to leave?" Auri inquired, ready to swim away.

"I think so, bye Nikora." Aika said, hugging Nikora one last time. Nikora didn't say anything back because she knew enough had been said. She knew that Aika was ready to go. "And please take care of my mother. That doesn't need saying." Nikora nodded in agreement, she was so proud of Aika for doing this for her own mother. Harumi would be taken care of, for sure.

"Goodbye, Aika. Be careful. Everyone here wishes you the best of luck. We all love you dearly." Nikora sighed, smiling.

When Aika and Auri had swam far enough that Nikora and the glimmering kingdom were not visible any longer, Aika stopped. Her eyes suddenly turned frightful and she trembled. "Oh, Auri. I'm so scared. What if I can't find the cure for mother? What if she dies? Oh, oh, oh. What if..." Aika trailed off into doubtful situations and held her head in her hands.

"What if... you stop worrying? These what ifs... they're only making things worse. Listen, Aika. You are such a brave mermaid. You'll find a cure, you'll save a life!" Auri stated gently as she comforted the blonde, who was shivering and fidgeting nervously.

"I just don't want to fail. I don't want to let anyone down. I don't want to lose her." Aika didn't let any tears fall from her icy eyes but was a statue. She was stone cold.

Auri stood still as well for a moment to stare at the under confident yet willing mermaid with intense interest. The other giddy, teen mermaids she had escorted always wanted to go to the surface for their own benefit and were incredibly selfish and rude. In fact, Aika amazed her. A mermaid of no more than fourteen years was journeying to land for the sake of her own mother. Any mermaid would, she guessed, but Aika's case was different. She had never seen such humbleness, modesty, and courage.

"I failed once Aika, but I got back up. I kept on going because I had to. You need to find a cure because you're the only one who can really do this. You need to try and make an effort, who knows, you might just find a cure that will save all mermaids that have been pained from this horrible sickness."

"You think so?" Aika gave a small smile, wiping the tear that never fell.

"I think I know so." Auri giggled. "And besides, we are so not turning back now. We're almost

there. Aren't you excited to be on land?!"

Aika giggled in return, shaking her head. "Yes, I am. Still, I can't have any distractions. The sooner I find the cure, the less time my mother will spend suffering."

Auri nodded. "Mm. I see. Well, anyways, I'll go find a place where you can put on those clothes without attracting any unwanted attention." Auri swam away to leave and was swimming back in no time with a huge grin on her face. "Let's go!" She urged and Aika followed her without a thought.

Aika was one splash away from the surface and she took a deep breath. Smiling widely, she broke through the barrier and immediately felt a new atmosphere. She felt chilly, she had been living underwater her entire life, but she was also quite warm from the sun's shining rays.

"Wow!" She exclaimed as she laid on the rough sand, laying her back against a huge, brown rock.

She looked around cautiously. "Auri? Auri?!" She yelled and then felt a hand clamped over her mouth. Auri.

"Shh! You don't want anybody to hear us and figure out that you're a mermaid, right?" She rolled her eyes and watched Aika shrug and nod. "'Kay then, be quiet. You'll transform to your human form in a few seconds." She released her hand.

Aika studied Auri up and down. She was no longer a gray oyster. She was now a tall, attractive brunette with hazel eyes and her fluffy hair tied into a messy ponytail. She was wearing a salmon pink sundress that came to her knees and a white sandals. It amazed Aika how much Auri's form had changed from an abalone to a human woman about the age twenty or more years.

"Auri, you look so pretty!" Aika complimented, amazed.

Auri laughed and posed playfully. "Oh, you." She said, swatting a hand in front of Aika's face. "Don't be such a flatterer. Well, I do have to admit that I still got it. Haven't been up here in more than a decade!"

Aika giggled in return and opened her mouth to say something, but gasped. She was being surrounded by a white light. She panicked and couldn't hear Auri say, "Don't worry, darling. You're just transforming." Aika felt her whole body changing, her mermaid tail beginning to twitch and separate into two bare, human legs. Her long, platinum blonde ponytail were growing shorter and even shifted colors. Her gleaming navy blue eyes were fading into a bright green.

When the light faded, she found that Princess Lucia's clothes were already on her. Her new body felt weird and new, but the clothes on her made it feel more comfortable. Auri's eyes twinkled as she caught sight of the mermaid in her human form and shoved a mirror into Aika's hands. Aika took one look and her mouth hung open.

Her hair was now split into two pigtails with a lovely hazelnut color and dirty blonde highlights. Her eyes were a bright green color that surprised her. She giggled as she no longer saw a pink mermaid tail.

"My appearance changed so much..." She trailed off, feeling her new legs.

Auri offered a hand, which Aika took. She stumbled as she stood on her legs, leaning on the rock for support. "I'm a human!" She whispered to herself, fist pumping in the air to no one in particular. Yes, she looked quite crazy.

Auri grinned, she remembered the first time she transformed into a human. She was very excited about the new things she could do and her appearance made her even more energetic and willing to do so much more.

"No distractions, am I right?" Auri asked, crossing her arms. When Aika turned silent, she sighed. "I'm joking. I understand how excited you are but we have to get to Pearl Piari to meet Mana. And, by the way, are you hungry?" Auri placed a hand on her grumbling stomach. "We're sure to get some of Mana's food, but a Popsicle or two never hurt anyone, right?"

"Popsicle? Ah...Auri..."

"Ha...I'll just get some. You can wait over on that bench over there." Auri pointed to a wooden bench near the Popsicle truck. Aika nodded and began to confidently walk as Auri hurried to the bench.

Aika was successfully walking and not stumbling until she crashed into another human and fell on her stomach. She rubbed her head sheepishly and murmured, "Ow." Looking up, she widened her eyes as she realized she just made her first physical contact with a real human.

A hand was forced out and Aika blushed as she took it. She was finally eye level with a boy, maybe her age. She didn't notice anything about him really except for his alluring amethyst eyes. She snapped out of her daydream as the boy sneered, "Watch where you're going next time." And then he walked off, snatching his hand out of Aika's grasp rudely.

Aika watched the boy run off and then frowned. _Rude_, she thought, as she sat on the bench with her arms crossed." _I hope not all humans are like him_, she thought again as she sighed. Auri had soon jogged back with two orange Popsicles and handed one to Aika.

"Eat up, Pearl Piari isn't too far away." Auri said, biting off some of the Popsicle with no pain. Aika, who was clueless at the moment, followed Auri's actions and then yelped in pain.

"Cold!" She ran to the nearest bin and spit it out. Unfortunately, that bin was a recycling bin. Auri smacked her forehead and sighed. "Lick it with your tongue. You're not an abalone so the coldness of the Popsicle actually hurts your teeth."

Aika sweat dropped, feeling dumb inside. She took Auri's advice and licked the Popsicle. The orange flavor melted in her mouth and she beamed. "Yummy!"

When the duo got to Pearl Piari, Aika grinned as the building towered above her. Auri casually opened the door, which for some reason was not locked. "Mana!" Auri shouted, storming into the kitchen. Aika heard a faint, "Auri!"

Auri and Mana were laughing as they came out. Aika looked at Mana and saw a great resemblance to Nikora. Mana was tall and lean, with a purple bangs and hair that was tied into a ponytail. She wore the inn uniform, which seemed to be a yellow, button-up blouse with a red collar and red cuffs, a red pencil skirt, a white apron, and low, red heels. Mana grinned at Aika and dashed to her, pulling her into a tight hug.

"Aika! My sister had told me all about you!"

"You're...Nikora's sister?" Aika looked at the woman, who seemed to be much younger than Nikora herself and could even be the same age as Lucia.

"Yup! After Nikora left land to leave with Princess Lucia, I took her place here." Mana stated proudly, releasing Aika from their hug.

"Oh...but Nikora never told me you were her sister."

Mana pouted. "Ah, that 'Kora. I'll tell you, I think she is just embarrassed that her sister is so much more awesomer and funner than she is!" Mana flaunted, placing her hands on her hips.

"I don't think awesomer and funner are words." Auri and Aika both said, sweat dropping.

"Whatever, a mermaid can dream." Mana ushered them to the dining area. "Sit down, I'll get you both something to eat. Y'all are probably famished from your trip, right?" Mana pranced to the kitchen before the two could even respond.

"That's Mana for you. More bubbly and giddy than me." Auri mumbled. "She is a great friend

though. No doubt about that."

"She seems very kind." Aika replied, messing around with her napkin.

Soon, Mana returned with two plates and on a tray and two glasses on the other tray. "Just this time, you two." She assured. "Next time you'll cook for yourselves." She placed a lemonade and water, both garnished neatly with a sliced lemon. Two grilled cheese sandwiches were put before them and Aika opened her mouth to fathom in amazement.

"Thank you so much, Mana. That was very quick!" Aika said, softly sipping the lemonade and she began to take a bite of the grilled cheese.

"Don't mention it. For a polite thing like you, Aika, it's a pleasure. Besides, being here all these years, cooking up a storm for raging customers has been no biggie." Mana answered back, pulling up a chair.

Aika flushed. "Ah. Um, really. These sandwiches are really great, Mana."

"You think? Well, I can cook some stew next time. Anyways..." Mana began. "tell me all about what's happening in the kingdom!"

_Aika yawned and stretched her arms. Her bed was more than comfortable and was suitable. Pink pillows, pink sheets, pink blankets. Yup, very suitable. Her room was appealing, it was much more different than her bedroom back home. She had a desk, lined with her seaweed wrapped journal, mussel ink, and other essentials. She had no need for the bubble blanket she packed and decided that these wool blankets were much softer and nicer. Mana had generously given enough clothes, which she shelved in her closet and dresser. There were also two white bean bags, just in case she actually made a friend who wanted to come over, and a large mirror. Aika loved her new room and was ready to take great care of it._

_The night was awkward at first, sleeping in the attire Mana called, 'pajamas', and getting used to her new legs. Oh, it was obviously the legs that bothered her the most. She'd get used to it though. Soon enough._

_Aika hopped out of bed and traveled to her mirror, grabbing a brush. Running the brush through her hair, her bright green eyes widened as the brush stopped on a hair clip. Scratch that, two hair clips that were planted into her head. "Eh?" she observed, toying with the red, heart-shaped clips that seemed to just not move at all. No matter how hard she tried, the two clips, both on the sides of sides of her head near her temples, would not budge. Finally, she sighed. She wouldn't get them out, and she didn't even know where they came from._

_Although the red, heart-shaped clips were a slight annoyance to her so early in the day, she saw a certain shine to them that made her suspect that something was going on._

_She shrugged it off. She reached unto her closet and took out her school uniform. Shaking off the the event from yesterday where Mana had coaxed her to go to a human school, she began to dress. Her uniform was sailor outfit, a dress really. The top half was a light pinkish color with a few buttons on the chest/stomach part, with red cuffs and a red ribbon collar. The bottom half was a simple red skirt._

_She exited her room and met with Auri and Mana. Their faces lit up when they saw her shyly present herself in the adorable school uniform. Mana grinned, "Why, it looks absolutely perfect on you! If a even a simple school uniform looks that good, think about all the cute outfits I'll put together for...heh...special occasions."_

_"But, Mana, you have a terrible sense of fashion. I mean, you must take a second look and pop your head in your closet sometime. You'll see." Auri commented, biting into a protein bar and flipping through, ironically, a fashion magazine._

_Mana fumed, staring at her clothing choices for a second, which were a comfy, orange tank and dark green sweatpants, and snapped her head towards Auri. She snatched the protein bar out of Auri's hand and responded, "For that, you won't get breakfast. What'll you do now?" She teased, sashaying into the kitchen._

_Auri rolled her eyes and continued to flip through her magazine. "You're such a riot, Mana. I can always eat something else," she replied. Her eyes shot to Aika, who was still standing by the doorway. "Sit down. Eat some breakfast. I'm sure Mana will be back soon." Then Auri muttered something quiet. "And never let Mana choose your clothes. Trust me."_

_Aika laughed, watching Mana waltz back into the dining area with two plates and two glasses, just like yesterday. She placed one for herself, sticking a tongue out at Auri on the way, and placed the other before Aika. Aika's eyes sparkled at the bright orange juice, scrambled eggs, and pancakes with butter. As she began to eat, everything seemed to melt in her mouth at once and she beamed at Mana._

_"Mana, everything you cook for Auri and I is delicious. I mean, maybe it's just because I've never tasted chicken eggs before. Still, you have skills!"_

_Mana nodded, scooping scrambled eggs into her mouth. "I guess. I have been here for a quite awhile. If you stay in the human world for this long, you learn a few things. Well, actually, you learn a lot."_

_Auri snorted, putting down her magazine. Making fun of Mana was her new pastime. Mana retorted in a fury, "Oh, shut up, Auri! You haven't even been here a day and you're already being so rude. You should, no, you WILL respect your elders."_

_Aika put a finger on her chin. "You're older than Auri?"_

_"Um, is it not obvious? I must admit it so, but I still look that young? I was born around the time of Princess Lucia, and like her, I'm in my late twenties. Yet, don't I look just fabulous?" _

_Silence._

_"Alright!" Mana chimed, crossing her arms. "So maybe I need a teeny bit of fashion help. But it's not that bad, right?" She asked us, her purple eyes glowing. She stood _

_Silence._

_"SOMEBODY SAY SOMETHING!"_

_"Mana, you look amazing!" Aika squeaked, saluting her. Auri shook her head and sweat dropped while Mana nodded at Aika in a not-so-modest way._

_"Now that, Auri," Auri's head turned at the sound of her name. "is how you respect your elders." Mana flaunted, pointing a finger right in Auri's face. "Really."_

_"Mana, stop giving the poor girl the frights." Auri countered. "Stop making her so scared. Look at her face. You can't force anyone to call you...acceptable."_

_"AURI!"_

_"Mana, Auri. Please don't be yelling so loudly in the morning." Aika whispered, sipping some orange juice. The two stared at Aika, who was insisting that they stop their unruly behavior. Both women looked at each other, Auri with her glaring, hazel eyes, and Mana with her beaming, purple eyes. They sighed._

_"That was my fault. I got worked up," huffed Mana, who sat back down in a rush. "You know, I just hate it. Ah, but it's so early in the morning." She stretched her arms and took a bite of toast, simply quiet as if the previous event hadn't happened at all._

_"Right. These type of arguments will happen often, so you'll get used to it." Auri responded, picking up the magazine and beginning to flip through it all over again. "I haven't seen Mana in a couple of years, it's nice to be able to tease her."_

_"Auri, again, I'm older than you! But...waaaaah you're such a meanie!"_

_Breakfast continued on like that..._

Aika sighed and looked out the window. Breakfast was too much and Mana and Auri could not stop their fussing. Yet, she couldn't complain, the two women were so good to her. Still, she thought the morning was rather irritating as their conversation was...awkward.

She was sitting next to Mana, who's eyes were kept on the road. The purple-haired mermaid would glance at Aika every now and then, grinning like there would be no tomorrow. Mana was happily driving, and Aika felt peculiar about this.._car._ She had no idea they could travel so fast on land, and in such a contraption. At first, she absolutely refused to get inside. She was okay with it now.

Mana, who was awfully bored being the bubbly one she was, spoke up. Stepping on the brakes for a red light, she turned to Aika. "Remember everything I told you?"

Aika nodded, counting them off her fingers. "I think so," she said hastily, smiling. "I will go by the surname-Nanami, you said that was the surname Princess Lucia went by. So, in the attendance sheet for school, my name will be Aika Nanami. And then, don't use the restrooms, no matter what. Don't participate in any activity that involves water. Don't tell anyone my true identity..."

"Yes, I don't want to have to reveal to my beloved sister your foam...oh! Don't forget the phone!" Mana reminded, turning right.

Aika nodded again, pulling the out the phone from her brown briefcase pocket. It was a touch-screen smartphone with a light pink case that had water splashes on them. Etched in the middle of the case was: Aika, a beautiful sight the piece of technology was. "I'm supposed to use this for emergencies." She said, her fingers searching for the ON button.

"Remember how to use it?"

"Mm." Aika mumbled, pressing the ON button, sliding up the lock, and pressing the phone application. "I press this and look for Auri or your number." she said, scrolling through contacts. She pressed the dial button, showed it to Mana, and put the phone back in her briefcase.

"Good girl," responded Mana, who came to a brief stop. "Now, you know I can't directly drop you off. You'll have to walk from here. Lastly, remember why you're going to school?"

"To learn." Aika replied curtly, unlocking the door and stepping out.

"And? I know you didn't want to go here, but to save your mother and to find a cure, you need to be..."

"Educated." Aika sighed and answered, looking down.

"Yup! Now, that'll be all. I'll be waiting for you here at about two hours past noon. Actually, I can drive you home, that is, unless you'd like to go down to the beach a walk near school and just swim home yourself."

"I'll swim. I won't be able to as much as I would like to anyways."

"Alright then. Be careful though, make sure no one is in sight."

"I promise." Aika crossed her heart and waved to Mana. "I have to get going!" She begged, minding how the other students were rushing in the building.

"Okay, okay. I'll be expecting you home by three. And make friends!" Mana drawled in a somewhat sad way, wiping a fake tear.

Aika beamed at her caretaker and gently closed the door, briefcase in hand. She inhaled sharply and confidently began walking across the walls of her new academy. She watched people run past her in a blazing hurry, particularly, her eye was kept on one person, who's aura seemed to drag people along with it.

It was a girl was gorgeous, dark brown hair and lighter highlights, waving in the wind. She couldn't see the girl's face, but what caught her eye were the two, light blue-green star clips that were both placed on the side of her head, right near her temples. She was wearing the same uniform, except for her thigh-high socks and black loafers.

Aika wondered how that girl could get what seemed to be her annoying hair clips out of her hair. She made a mental note to ask her. She was irritated by these heart hair clips anyways, and she had no idea where they had came from.

By the time she had gotten to the hallways, everything was silent. No one was in sight. She peered at the huge grandfather clock and realized the obvious. She was five minutes late. Her hands trembled as she pulled out an important sheet of paper, which told her she'd be in Room 1909, Class 1B, with the teacher who had the surname of Mitsuki. She panicked as she surveyed the room numbers and she couldn't find the number 1909. Finally, she gave into a run.

She had gotten to the turn of a long hallway and a flight of a dozen stairs when she saw a man. Before she could speak, the man was already walking towards her, with a ton of papers and folders tucked under his arm. He gave a reassuring smile as he approached her with a slightly questioned face.

"Are you lost?" He asked, shuffling the papers and folders around in a uncomfortable way.

Aika's eyes widened as she was a stack of the papers about to fall. "Do you need help with that?" She asked back, before answering his question.

He shook his head and readjusted so that the stack of papers were nowhere near falling. "No, but that's very kind of you. Now, are you lost?"

Aika nodded, flustered. "I'm a new student. I'm so sorry I'm late and I really don't want to trouble you. But if you can help, I'm supposed to be in Class 1B for homeroom." She admitted, fiddling with her briefcase.

"1B?" She nodded again. "Well, what a coincidence. You're in my class then. I'm the teacher for that class. Actually, I was just going on an errand for some papers. You can follow me to your class,..."

"Aika." She stated, beginning to follow in his tracks to Room 1909.

He stopped, and turned around to face her. His lips twitched and she feared she had done something wrong. "Aika...Nanami?" He asked carefully, staring at her. His mouth was shut tight, and in a straight line. He shifted to his left some.

"Um..yes?" She tried to say but it ended up as a confused remark. "That's my name. Is there something wrong with that?" She didn't mean for it to sound as if she were insulted or felt like it, but it did anyways.

His face brightened a tiny bit and he smiled the same way he did previously. "No, just wanted to make sure you were the same one as the Aika Nanami on my attendance sheet."

She chuckled nervously. "Yup, that's me." She continued, shrugging.

She began following her teacher again through the lit, wide hallways. Surrounding her were the clean, white cement walls decorated with bulletin boards and posters for club advertisements. There were dozens of doors to classrooms, which were all a rectangular shape with a glass peer-in, all on exterior. The floors were not too dull, but not too shiny either, a nice mahogany color. When she was finished observing the hallways, she found herself in front of the door that led to Room 1909, Class 1B.

"Here we are," he said, placing a hand on the knob. He smiled again. "Ladies first." He offered, opening the door.

Aika inhaled, taking a deep breath. She eyed her teacher with a grateful smile, clenched her briefcase tightly, and walked in, her red, laced boots clacking on the ground. Silence was all she heard when she stepped in, her head down as she stood in front of the class of students shyly. Thankfully, her teacher was already sitting at his desk by then, calmly addressing the class.

"Everyone, this is our new addition. Won't you introduce yourself?"

Aika slowly lifted her head, wincing as she saw all the students, both boys and girls staring at her with cautious gazes. She tried giving a humble smile and bowed. "My name is Aika Nanami. It's nice to meet you all and I hope we can become great friends." She announced.

She turned to her teacher, who nodded. "Aika, you may sit...in between Kei and...Sora?!" He exclaimed, a bit surprised. "What are you doing here?!"

The girl, Sora, looked undoubtedly familiar, which was, at least what Aika thought. It took her a minute, and then she knew it. It snapped into her brain and she grinned. It was the same girl she had seen earlier that morning, the brunette with the star hair clips. Sora's sky blue eyes were caught by her teacher's doe brown ones, and Sora spoke up.

"I was about to tell you, Mr.M," she explained, gently speaking. "that I got transferred to this class for homeroom for the rest of the semester. You can check your attendance sheet. I'm really no longer in Miss Kawabata's class anymore."

The teacher, Mr.M, skimmed his attendance sheet, looked up at the silenced class and Sora, and apologized. "Oh, I'm sorry, Sora. I was just a little shocked. I'll be more attentive next time." Sora shrugged, signaling that she was okay with the situation and that it was over. Mr.M turned back to Aika with the same warm smile. "Go ahead, Aika. You may sit down."

As the conversations of giddy teenagers continued, Aika bowed to her teacher and murmured, "Thank you." Then she trailed to her seat, keeping her head down again as she sat down in the wooden chair, which was the utmost uncomfortable thing ever, especially in her human body. She kept her briefcase close to her, since Mana had warned her that human thieves were more dangerous and conniving on land. Homeroom was nothing so she didn't pull out any materials.

Finding confidence in herself, she decided she would use the last ten minutes of homeroom to ask Sora how she could get the hair clips out her hair. She averted her gaze to her left, seeing Sora looking out the window solemnly. She reached out to tap her on the shoulder lightly, making Sora immediately snap around at the touch of one of her fellow classmates.

"The new student," she stated, smiling in a sympathetic way. "What do you need?"

"Um...uh..." Aika blinked and bit her lip, just realizing how stupid her question could seem to others. "I was wondering how you get your clips out. And by the way, they're very pretty." She added, just in case Sora would raise some eyebrows.

"Thanks. But if you're wondering, you should ask someone else. I've only had these for a day, they just appeared on my head this morning and they wouldn't come off." Sora revealed, trying to tug on her star hair clips.

"Well, isn't that weird? Same thing happened to me. I have no idea how to take these out!" Aika complained, tugging on her heart hair clips as well.

Sora silenced herself for a moment, and then her eyes widened in the split second of realization. "Are you-"

She was interrupted. "Hi!" A high-pitched voice screeched in front of her, making Aika's ears split. Towering above her was a cheery, hyper girl, with too bright eyes that it almost blinded Aika. She could no longer hear, see, or converse with Sora, so she looked the girl in front of her up and down.

It was pinkette with a long, messy braid that had hair clips and pins sticking out everywhere. Her magenta eyes were shining behind her huge, circular glasses, which did not make her look dorky or nerdy at all. Rather, it was cute and even...Aika had to admit...decently fashionable. The pinkette had altered her school uniform, decorating with sequins and tiny bits of feathers here and there. She had rainbow striped socks and bright orange converses, which looked weird with her sailor school uniform. Scratch that, it looked like it belonged, especially with the rather colorful uniform.

"Um, hello." Aika greeted, a bit fascinated with the fashion sense of the student in font of her.

The pinkette stretched out a hand eagerly. "I'm Emiko Koizumi. You can call me Emi, Aika! Hey, can I call you Ai? Can I? Can I?!"

Aika shook Emiko's hand, which was easily crushing hers in the handshake, no effort required for the pinkette. "Um, sure." Aika stated, blinking hard as her hand was released from the crushing grip.

"Alright, Ai! You see," Emiko started, pulling up a chair from nowhere and placing her elbows on Aika's desk. "I'm always the one to welcome the new students! It's part of my job as Vice President of the Student Counsel!" She reported, grinning brightly at Aika.

"Wow!" Aika exclaimed excitedly, clasping her hands together. "You're the Vice President?"

"Did I not just say so?" Emiko wondered, putting a finger to her chin. "I think I did. But anyways, I hope you love this school! It's the best in the district and we have so many great clubs, activities, and opportunities. This is such a great school. I bet it wouldn't even need to compare to your old one. Hey, that reminds me something I'd like to ask. Where was your old school? What was it called? Oh, where did you move from, Ai?"

Aika's eyes widened at the overflow of questions. She began to stammer as she did her best to answer the question quickly. "Um..well...I...um...I..."

Emiko blinked and her eyes lit up. "Hey! I just noticed something! You like to say 'um' a lot, don't you?"

"Well," she stuttered, shifting uncomfortably in an embarrassed way. "I don't...you see..."

"That's okay. Everyone has their own favorite word." Emiko nodded, blindly trying to comfort Aika, who didn't really need any. "But, Ai, back to my questions. So, where did you move from? That's always a good questions I ask the new students."

Aika carelessly answered back, trying her best not to stammer again. "Me, I came from the oce-" she slapped a hand over her mouth, almost revealing her most important secret, one that could cost her her life is the information of her identity fell into the wrong hands. Emiko was innocently staring at her with huge magenta eyes, thinking about the rest of Aika's sentence.

"You're from where? What's the ohhh-chehh?"

Aika's mouth was dried up, she couldn't blurt out a word. Her heart was pounding and her mind was spinning, doing its best to cover up her mistake. She didn't know what to say. She just couldn't think of anything. _How could I be so stupid?! I mean, if I had finished that sentence, I could only think of the suspicions that Emiko would have,_ Aika thought, her eyes growing wider and wider.

Emiko impatiently waved a hand in front of Aika's face. "Hello? You're from where?"

"Emiko-Emi, I mean, I...um...I..."

"Ai, just tell me where you're from. It can be a word. It's not that hard."

"Listen, I really can't...I don't know what to tell you...because...I..."

"Tell me! Tell me! TELL ME!"

"...I...am... from..uh..."

Aika was saved.

"Emi, please leave her alone. Maybe she doesn't want to tell you." A calm voice called out to Emiko, who turned around in a snap. Thankfully, it was Sora, who was addressing the hyper, giddy Emiko in a gentle, yet pleading voice as sky blue eyes were telling Aika it was all okay.

"Soso," Emiko cocked her head to the side and laughed. "Oh, that's right. Good point, Soso."

"I have told you a million times to NOT call me Soso!" Sora demanded with a sudden change in tone, glaring at the guffawing Emiko. "It's just Sora. Sora! Not Soso! SORA!"

"Sora? But I like Soso better!" Emiko whined, toying with her braid. "It sounds more exciting!"

"Eh?! I don't care whether it sounds more exciting or not. You will NOT call me Soso!"

"But you call me Emi!"

"That's because you want me too!"

"Oh yeah. Again, good point."

"Ugh, never mind." Sora sighed, rubbing her temples irritably. "Just don't bother Aika again."

Aika was caught in the mid-argument as Emiko turned back around. She cocked her head again in an innocent way. "Am I bothering you? Am I? Am I really?" She asked worriedly, slapping her hands on her cheeks like a porcelain doll.

Sora answered before Aika could. "Emi," she whispered. "You're badgering her into telling you all about her life. What if she doesn't want to tell you personal stuff like that? I know you mean well, but sometimes you push way too far." Aika mouthed 'thank you' right after. Sora saw it and nodded in return, signaling a 'you're welcome'.

"If I am bothering you..." Emiko trailed off, frowning sadly.

"Yes...well, I mean no! Emi, you were so kind as of to welcome me like this. I really do appreciate it, I mean again, if you'd like to know!" Aika assured, grinning widely at Emiko.

"But if where you came from, if that-" She was interrupted by Sora nudging her with her elbow, eyes ordering Emiko to totally back off.

"Not really. I just...I guess I was pressured because you were begging." Aika sheepishly rubbed the back of her head. "Well, you wanted to know, so here it is. I came from the coast. I live right across from the beach."

Emiko's eyes sparkled and she beamed. "Awesome! I love the beach! I love swimming! I love the ocean! Don't you just LOVE the water?! Don't you?" Emiko switched right back into hyper mode in a flash. Aika and Sora both sweat dropped as Emiko was badgering right again for answers.

Sora intervened as Aika's savior again. As Sora snapped back into her calm tone, she gently placed a hand on Emiko's shoulder. "Emi," she reminded. "don't."

Emiko blinked. She averted her gaze to Sora, then glanced at Aika. She guessed it was time to leave. In a flash, she disappeared right back to her seat, dragging the seat she had pulled up with her. Fast as lighting was that girl, and even thinking about it made Aika happy. Emiko was definitely a very welcoming, joyful person that she would be glad to have a friend as.

"That was...an interesting encounter. I will never meet anyone like her." Aika muttered, smiling.

"That's our Emi for you. She's still a great friend to have. Someone probably gave her some candy this morning. That's why she was even more cheery and joyful than she already is. Too bad you had to be the new student on a day where someone did do that though." Sora blinked, staring off into the dust trails that Emiko had left dragging the chair with her.

"Oh, Sora. I want to say this before I forget. So, uh, thank you so much for saving me back there."

Sora gave a heart-warming smile back. "No problemo! Always help someone in need, right?"

Aika nodded. "Well, yeah. Of course."

Feeling the awkward silence tense the atmosphere, Aika weakly smiled at Sora one last time before turning back to face the front. The rather friendly conversation had come to an end and neither had anything to say. Aika's eyes then flickered to the right of her to see who would be the other classmate sitting next to her for the rest of the year. The bright green eyes of hers grew wide, as they had done so often, but very wide as she found out exactly who it was.

Her mouth opened as she pointed a finger accusingly. "You!" she shrieked, her finger dangling in the air.

Dark and icy amethyst eyes met hers in a flash as her classmate stared at her with dismay. The boy was tall, muscular from her view, and definitely very handsome with his platinum, silver spikes of hair and stony face. Aika's mouth dropped as she caught sight of just about how even more attractive this terribly rude boy was and her face was already heating up.

"Excuse me?" he growled, narrowing his eyebrows. Aika began to shrink under his stare.

Aika's face was still a nice shade of crimson, and she still didn't know why she was feeling so flustered. She found her confidence and voice again. Stuttering, she answered, "Y-y-you're th-that boy I bumped into!" She crossed her arms a narrowed her eyebrows in an attempt to return the stony face.

He snickered back, lazily rolling his eyes. "Oh, right. It's you."

Aika pouted angrily. "Aren't you going to say anything? You remember bumping into me, right?" she asked, growing a bit too sassy. Immaturely sticking her tongue out, she waited impatiently for him to say anything.

"Yeah," he retorted, as if remembering suddenly. "Watch where you're going next time." Then he turned away from her with a slight sneer on his face. Aika's mouth dropped once again as she fumed. This guy was just way too much for her.

"It's called apologizing," she replied sarcastically. "Oh, I'm sorry. You probably don't even know what that is. And, did I say I was sorry?"

"Yes," he remarked, glaring at her.

"Also, you might want to try being NICE to people. Oops, did it again. I shouldn't be talking about this when you have no idea what it is." Aika had had enough and when she wanted to reveal herself, she would. She would not get pushed around ever again. If this guy had something to say, she would know what to say back. She was not afraid to counter on him with her sarcasm and touch of sassy.

"You don't want to continue this," he contended, ready to explode from annoyance. "you're not going to win."

Aika scoffed. "Are you threatening me?"

"Watch it, Nanami. You really don't want to push it."

"Aw. You remember my name. How kind of you."

The boy stood up in rage, all eyes in the class, except for the teachers, flickered to him. He slammed his fist on his desk in a lived way, glaring even harder at Aika. She began to shiver beneath his glaring amethyst eyes, losing both her past voice and confidence. She had just gotten into a very bad situation. This time, she had no way out and no willing savior.

Hissing through his teeth, he addressed Aika. "I told you not to push any further."

Saved. Again. By. The. Bell.

BRRIINNNNGGG!

Quickly, students were pushing to get out of the room and away from the boy. Aika stood up too, still no match for his glare. Emiko was there to to harshly pry her away from it all, pulling her by the shoulder. As Emiko dragged her out of the room, Aika caught sight of the boy seething at her with vexed, stony face. She shuddered, clutching her briefcase. The small conversation was enough to make her regret that she had taken it a bit too far.

When they far enough from the fireball, volcano ready to erupt, Emiko was frowning. "That was _really _stupid, Ai. What were you thinking?!" Emiko scolded, flicking Aika's forehead.

Aika rubbed her forehead and frowned back. "I don't know. I just..."

Emiko sighed and shook her head. Her cheeriness and joy had completely disappeared as she began to speak very lowly. "I don't know what you were thinking either, but..." she gestured for Aika to come closer, looking from side to side to make sure no one was actually listening. "you never mess with Kei. Remember that. It is a life saver. I know you're new. Still, never mess with him ever again, understand?"

"Kei," Aika murmured, "I understand, Emi. Thanks for the advice, I guess." She shrugged, pulling away from Emiko's grasp and walking off rudely, leaving Emiko's mouth dropping. Aika was in no mood for this at all. This Kei dude would have to deal with her, and again, she was not about put down by this tyrant. If he wanted to be rude and just plain mean, she would stop it. In fact, she had the perfect idea.

They were going to be friends, for sure. Aika was going to be friends with this stubborn donkey. No matter how long it would take, she was tired of him already. Kei to her, seemed anti-social and rather lonely even. If he just had someone to lean on, someone to support him, he could become a much friendlier person. That was what Aika was shooting for. She would be friends with him, she was going to do it. She would not let him stop her.

Aika was caught off guard when she realized that she was pretty much late again. She regretted that she had left Emiko and wished there was someone to guide her around. Aika had been walking in one direction for some time, thinking about how she'd become friends with Kei. Switching her gaze around, she let out a sigh of relief when she saw a familiar brunette.

"Sora," Aika smiled gratefully. "Can you show me where..." She took out her schedule and scanned it. For first period, she had Arithmetic with Mr. Yukimura. "...Mr. Yukimura's room is, please?"

Sora smiled back, nodding. "This way." She pointed, walking beside Aika. "I have him for first period too, so, that's a nice coincidence." Aika waited for Sora to say something else as well, but nothing came until Sora decided to. Like Emiko did earlier, Sora whispered lowly about the earlier situation Aika had gotten herself into. "I know Emi warned you," she started. "but I also can't believe you took that risk."

Aika sighed. She opened the door to Mr. Yukimura's room when they got there, allowing Sora to then mouth a 'thank you'. "I wasn't thinking, 'kay? I don't really want to talk about it. Um, and, if you see Emi later, tell her that I genuinely appreciate her advice. Thanks." Sora waved went to go sit down in her seat and Aika went up to the teacher's desk to show her pass to him.

Mr. Yukimura overlooked the pass, his tiny gray eyes squinting behind his thick glasses. His dark gray hair was streaked with white and his black suit made him look superior and sharp. Speaking in a gruff voice, Mr. Yukimura grunted, "Miss Nanami, sit next to Miss Houshou." He pointed to the lonely window seat...right next to Sora. _Another coincidence,_ Aika thought, dragging her briefcase all the way to her seat before plopping right next to Sora.

The bell rang again, indicating transition from homeroom to first period was over. Mr. Yukimura shot up out of his chair and grabbed some chalk. He began to write on the board, 'Pre-Algebra'. Students groaned as if on cue as they glanced at the subject. "Now, now. Do we complain?!" Mr. Yukimura scolded, staring down on all of his students.

"No." All the students, except for Aika, replied lazily in unison.

"Hmph. Let's get started then." Mr. Yukimura responded, beginning to write an equation.

(3x2y-2)3 / (9xy3)3

"Who can simplify this equation?" he boomed, quickly drawing a circle around the equation to signal just how important it was.

No one really cared about it at all. Everyone seemed to just about hate pre-algebra. Some people were snoozing off, others whispering and passing notes, and some just staring off into space. Aika was one of the people staring off into space, tuning out whatever Mr. Yukimura had to say. She had a private instructor back home who taught her intense subjects and worked her to her best. Aika was extremely intelligent, not to show off or anything. Arithmetic was nothing. She needed to go to this school to learn more about the things she didn't learn with her private instructor: biology, chemistry, and much more parts of medical science.

Mr. Yukimura caught Aika staring off and decided to surprise the new student with a school-warming arithmetic problem. "Miss Nanami," he barked, making her eyes snap open as her head turned. "Solve this problem for us, will you?" He was already holding the chalk out for her.

Aika smiled weakly, for probably the third time that day. She hopped out of her seat, took the chalk, and confidently wrote the answer to the right of the equation.

(1/27)(x3 / y15)

"The answer is one-twenty-seventh multiplied by x to the third power divided by y to the fifteenth power." She put the chalk on the ledge that stretched from the board and trailed back to her seat. All eyes were on her for the second time again today as she sat back down in her seat, holding her briefcase close to her.

Mr. Yukimura reached for a thick textbook and skimmed it. His dark gray eyes were on her, eyebrows narrowing. "That is...correct. Very well done, Miss Nanami. Onto the next problem..."

Aika laid back in her seat with a relief as Mr. Yukimura began to write the next problem. Sora was already nudging her in the elbow with a thumbs-up. "That was smooth. You're very smart, Aika."

"Well..." Aika blushed, shifting uncomfortably. "That wasn't too bad."

"Wasn't too bad? Right now, I'm still wondering how you solved that problem in a snap." Sora confessed, rubbing her temples and staring at the previous equation.

"Easy," Aika whispered to Sora, beginning to write the equation out on a sheet of paper. "First, you multiply x to the second power and also y to the negative second power...multiply that by three...then move to the second parentheses, where it's y-cubed and...multiply that by nine and x...cube that simplification...and divide your answers. Then you'll get one-twenty-seventh multiplied by x to the third power divided by y to the fifteenth power." Aika pointed to the jumbled numbers scrawled on the sheet of paper.

Sora blinked. "There's no way you just figured that all out."

"I've solved much more complex equations." Aika shrugged, laying back in her seat again.

"Aika, how do you do it?" Aika opened her mouth to answer but she was interrupted.

"Miss Houshou," a deep, gruff voice called out. Sora snapped right over to face Mr. Yukimura. "Since you seem to just love to chat, you should be able to easily solve this equation right here." Another circle drawn around an even more complicated equation on the board. Sora gulped.

"Uh...sure."

230,000,000,000 in scientific notation

"Well, of course..it...it...would be..uh..." Sora stammered, eyeing the equation. "Oh! Scientific notation!" she exclaimed and grabbed the chalk, writing the answer.

"Yes, Miss Houshou," Mr. Yukimura muttered. "Nice of you to join us."

"The answer would be..." She pointed to her answer. "Two and three tenths multiplied by ten to the eleventh power. Is that right?"

Mr. Yukimura took a second to nod. Sora smiled and did a tiny fist pump in the air after she had sat down in her seat. Aah, the joys and simplicity of scientific notations.

"Awesome!" Aika said to Sora, returning a thumbs-up. "Now, how did you figure that out?"

Sora giggled. "Scientific notations are downhills. They're one of the easiest things to learn."

"Onto the next problem..." Mr. Yukimura bellowed, all students groaning again.

School just seemed to roll on from there...

* * *

When the school day ended, Aika rushed out of the building, panting hard. She wanted to get home as quickly as she could, hoping not to get in trouble with the ferocious Mana. As much as she would've liked to stay and chat a few minutes longer with her new friends, Sora and Emiko, both whom she had sat at lunch with, she had to get home as soon as possible.

Her school day overall was quite interesting. Interacting with humans was most unexpected. She never expected such kindness and humor...also...rudeness from some.

Aika was ready to deal with Kei and become friends. His attitude and personality would not stop her. In fact, she thought of this as a goal and his negative aura as an encouragement. She knew just about how stubborn she was herself, so a challenge like this would've been no problem.

Minding that she was a few steps away from getting ready to hop into the ocean, she took out her cellphone and dialed Mana's number. _"Helloooooo? This is Mana!" _Aika smiled at the sound of the her giddy caretaker. "Mana, it's Aika. I'm gonna be home in about ten minutes."

_"Aika!" _Mana's voice rang happily. _"Ooh, goddess, how was schoooool?! Okay, okay. You know what? We'll just talk about how school went once you come home! Make sure to be safe." _Aika giggled, not failing to catch the concern hidden in Mana's voice.

"Of course I'll be safe! I'l see you soon!" Aika hung up and slipped her phone back into her briefcase. She turned around with haste to make sure no one was watching her. Carefully, she then looked from side to side. With a sigh of relief, she quickly dived into the ocean with grace, making a small splash.

Little did she know a certain brunette had seen her..."So, Aika Nanami. You really are a mermaid..."

Aika soon saw the same white light surrounding her from when she first transformed. Her human legs were merging into her pink mermaid tail. Her hazelnut pigtails with dirty blonde highlights were tying right into her long, platinum blonde ponytail. Her bright green eyes were frosting into the familiar navy blue color.

She stretched her arms and flailed her mermaid tail, for fear of some cramps. Being on two human legs for just a day was tiring and she was relieved to be back in her mermaid form for just a while. Ready to enjoy some bliss for a while, she swam around.

Only after a few minutes of swimming in the direction of the beach near Pearl Piari, Aika hastily stopped. _I'm being watched,_ she thought with fear running through her mind, _there's someone here_. Taking a deep breath, she inhaled sharply and carefully looked around. In a timid voice, she warned, "I know there's someone there. I can feel you! So unless you're too coward to show your face, I'll swim on!"

Aika wasn't bothered by the few seconds of silence, considering that it all had a chance of being a hallucination. But no, Aika _was_ bothered by the sudden chill she felt around her neck, as if an invisible ghost was strangling her with its frigid limbs. Her navy blue eyes went wide as she threw her sweaty palms over her neck, just in case there was actually someone there.

She was surprised. She was very surprised by the necklace that had been placed around her neck. In fact, she was just about shocked by ow it could have even got there! She felt for the clip and took off the necklace, inspecting it as soon as she felt the silky string in her hands.

The necklace seemed unreal, soft pink seashell pendant that had a pair of darker pink wings on the side. Aika was intrigued. She forgot about the fact that she had no idea where it came from, but she loved it. The sense of familiarity it emitted just drew Aika to the pendant. Her fingers wandered over the creases in the pendant's smooth surface. Then, she noticed that there was an opening in the pendant. Holding the seashell pendant closely with both hands, she opened up the pendant, and gasped.

Before she could screech at the top of her lungs, there was an image in front of her that astounded her, almost tricking her very eyes: another mermaid.

Of course Aika had seen so many mermaids in her life, but the one that seemed to stand in front of her frightened her the most. The mermaid looked ghostly and transparent, like she was a hologram of some sorts. She was probably a mermaid that belonged to North Pacific, like Aika, with her royal pink tail and her stunning blonde pigtails that were tied with pink beads. The mermaid's ocean blue eyes had a certain gleam that warned her. What caught Aika's eye the most was a golden scepter the mermaid held.

Completely forgetting about what was in the seashell pendant, she turned her attention to the mermaid, narrowing her eyes. In a shaking voice, she asked, "Who are you and what do you want with me?"

Shocking Aika, the mermaid began to speak in a gentle voice. "Don't worry, Aika. I am not going hurt you. Just calm down." The ends of the mermaid's soft pink lips curved upward into an assuring smile creepily.

Aika's mouth flew open as she heard the mermaid talk. "Y-you-you t-talk!" Aika stuttered, tempted to point a finger accusingly. "A-and you know my n-name!"

"I do," the mermaid chuckled, staring at Aika with her ocean blue eyes. "I do talk, and I do know your name. Now, I asked you to calm down. Take a deep breath, Aika."

"W-what!" Aika exclaimed, crossing her arms in defense. "I will not! Not until I know exactly who you are and what you want with me! I mean, that it, unless I am hallucinating..." Aika trailed off.

The mermaid sighed, shaking her head. "I don't know if I can tell you who I am until you've calmed down. I'm sure you'll be in a state of shock"

"Hey! I can't calm down! I mean, suddenly, this mermaid just appears in front of me and tells me to calm down! Is that practical? I don't think it is! I'm not one to adapt to things so quickly! I'll have you know..." Aika began to ramble, slightly glaring at the mermaid, who giggled.

"Aika, Aika, Aika." The mermaid clicked her tongue playfully, something sparking in her eyes. "I'm trying to get you to calm down for your own good. Once you find out who I really am..." The mermaid smiled down at Aika.

"Well, then? Go ahead, tell me who you are. I can handle it." Aika snapped, her sassy side getting in touch.

The mermaid raised her eyebrows and shrugged. "I mean," she chuckled lightly, "you asked for it. So, fine. I'll tell you my name. But don't be surprised if you find yourself unconscious after this." The mermaid took a deep breath and stared right into Aika's eyes. "My name is Lucia Nanami and I was the Pink Pearl Mermaid Princess, ruler of the North Pacific Ocean."

Aika knew right then that she should've listened, because right then and there, she went down upon hearing the name of the beloved princess the North Pacific kingdom had lost four years ago. Her navy blue orbs looked faded as her vision became blurry. Her hands flew numbly to the seashell pendant hovering over her heart as she clutched it tightly. And before she knew it, tears were bursting out of her eyes and flowing over her cheeks like a river.

Lucia recoiled instantly, not expecting such a reaction. Her mouth formed a tiny 'o' as she dashed to Aika, comforting her with a ghostly touch, since she wasn't really there. Lucia stared at the sobbing mermaid under her grasp sadly. "I'm so sorry, Aika. I really am. I had to leave the kingdom for a reason, but I'm here, okay? I'm here, Aika, I'm here." Lucia whispered soothingly, hugging Aika.

Aika's head turned to meet Lucia's eyes as more tears fell down her face. "You can't," she choked, coughing, "you can't be. The princess left four years ago. She left us all!"

Lucia sighed with a guilty look. "I know, I know. Please understand, Aika. I am Lucia, I was the princess who left my kingdom four years ago. Yet I'm here, I'm with you."

"You left the seven seas in panic! The kingdom was falling as the Elite Counsels went on the Search! And they came back with the plague! Why, why?! Why did you leave?!"

"It was for an important reason, Aika. I understand that you're angry, that the whole kingdom was probably angry with my decisions. I don't blame anyone for what I did, but it was only for the better of all the seven seas."

Aika knew it would be insulting to the princess if she expressed her rage, so she expressed her sadness instead as she continued to mope. Her voice grew hoarse as she quieted down some. "Then, why? Tell me why you left us all. Tell me, please."

Lucia pursed her lips. "I have a lot to explain, Aika. So please be silent throughout this all, because some of it you really won't understand at your age." Lucia patted Aika lightly on the head as she began, "Every year, there is an annual meeting in the Heavens of the four elements: Water, Air, Earth, and Fire. Each element is a division led by a goddess and seven princesses, built on the foundation of harmonies and melodies; singing."

"The last annual meeting happened four years ago, one month before the other six Mermaid Princesses and I disappeared. The meeting was a calamity, it was chaos. The Sky Goddess, Cael Regina, and her seven princesses betrayed us all by ambushing us. Three Earth princesses, two Fire princesses, and our own Aqua Regina were captured and killed."

Aika gasped, bursting into harder sobs. Lucia began to whimper softly too, thinking about the past event. "It was horrid. I couldn't believe the Sky kingdom would do such a thing, betraying all the other elements like that. They're terrifying enemies to this day, and no creature is safe, not even humans." Lucia explained, sour tears piercing her cheeks.

Aika wanted to say something, anything. The sadness inside of her was eating her from the inside. _Our own Aqua Regina,_ Aika thought drearily, _she's...she's...she's...dead! The goddess of the seven seas is dead and all of mermaid kind are vulnerable! And Princess Lucia...everyone...nothing makes sense anymore. I thought I had lived a plain, yet happy, calm life until now, even with my mother being ill. But..._

"It's devastating, it really is. Sometimes I wake up at night from the nightmares that haunt me from that day. Thinking about her...death...is painful, and I've done all I can to move on. Aqua Regina was the 'Mother of All Mermaids'," Lucia paused drearily, "that was the nickname we gave her. She gave us the power we needed to defeat our enemies, but, now we don't have her."

"She protected all seven seas from any harm. She was...she was so much to us. Without her, the safety of mermaid kind was in jeopardy. So that's why I _had _to do something. I had to protect the ocean from the Sky kingdom. And I'll let you know that...Aqua Regina chose me to be her successor. In the case that she would...pass, I'd take her place as Goddess of the Sea. I just never thought it'd be so soon."

"I was to be crowned by the Ancient Ones, the only living group of immortals left who have the ability to crown an element goddess. But, there were some bumps in the road and," Lucia wiped a silent tear from her eye, "I'll just say that not everything went perfect. The Ancient Ones refused to crown me because they...considered that I was not worthy enough to be a goddess."

Aika offered a tiny, sympathetic smile, despite still being effected from the shock of Aqua Regina's death. Lucia took it as a good sign, shooting a glance towards Aika quickly before starting her explanation again. "We tried everything we could to convince them that the ocean needed a goddess for protection, but they didn't buy it. They still thought I wasn't worthy enough. I had to prove my worthiness in order to be crowned."

"And to be crowned, I needed to first prove my worthiness to the other two element goddesses, Terra Regina and Ignia Regina, the Earth and Fire goddesses. They gave me the mission to help recover some of the gems for the Earth kingdom and some of the ash-crystals for the Fire kingdom, all from the..dead princesses. The goddesses would then influence the Ancient Ones to crown me goddess. The other six Mermaid princesses and I have gone on this mission and we've been trying our best for the last four years to recover the missing items."

Aika finally spoke up, questioning the troubled princess. "Um...Princess Lucia...is that why you've been gone for the last four years?"

Lucia nodded. "Yes. That's why. We were in such a rush to start the mission that we had no time to tell our people of the troubles that awaited them. We reluctantly abandoned our pearls, since it's forbidden to cross the borderlines to another kingdom with our pearls. The Elite Counsels searched for us for three years, but only found our pearls. We were resigning on our roles as mermaid princesses."

"So...you're not a mermaid princess anymore?" Aika asked, bawling her eyes.

"I am not. And this is the reason I came to you, Aika. I want you to-"

Aika hadn't listened to a word Lucia had said after she admitted that she wasn't the princess anymore. "W-what?!" Aika screeched, gawking at Lucia. "You're not, you're not, you're not our princess anymore?!"

Lucia recoiled again, but quickly recovered. "No, Aika, I am not. Please, don't make me ask you to calm down again." The mermaid responded gently, still holding Aika.

"But, then, who's going to be the princess? Who's going to protect the kingdom?"

Lucia smiled warmly as she turned to Aika with her lovely, ocean blue eyes gleaming. "And that," she playfully poked Aika's nose, "is why I came to you. Did you see what was inside your pendant?"

Aika's eyes bugged out as her trembling hands fumbled against the lock of the pendant. She clicked it open and could already spot a dazzling light peeking out. Aika's eye shot to Lucia's in a flash, narrowing. "Oh, Lucia, please don't tell me," her eyes softened, "that the Pink Pearl is in here!"

Lucia nodded hastily. "It sure is, _Princess _Aika."

Aika's mouth dropped. She stuttered, "B-but, I-I, n-no way! Y-you did n-not just c-call m-me that!"

"But I just did." Lucia helped to open the pendant, and sure enough, the Pink Pearl was there, lying in the middle of the seashell pendant mold, with darker pink and gold designs around it. "I chose _you _to be my successor. You are the new Pink Pearl Mermaid Princess."

"No," Aika refused, shaking her head. "no, no, no, no, no. I apologize for saying this, but don't you dare! Don't you dare call me a _princess_ when I am barely worthy! I am no princess! I am just a regular mermaid who has an important, internal mission!"

"I know you've been trying to find a cure for your mother. Going to land just for her, right? Back in my day, it was to find my pearl, and my own personal reasons. I wanted to fall in love with a boy I saved. But you, Aika, you astound me. You didn't want to go to land, you needed to. You needed to go to land for your mother! That shows a whole basket full of your characteristics, ones that a real princess should have: kindness, humbleness, courage, bravery, integrity. The list could go on!"

"You really think that I should be princess? You think I'm worthy enough?" Aika sniffled, her thumb grazing over the pearl preciously.

"I think you are more than worthy enough to become princess. You deserve this. I knew why I chose you to be my successor from the beginning, when I held you in my arms. I was there when your mother, Harumi, gave birth to you. Aika, you are the 'love song' of the seven seas. You are the Pink Pearl Mermaid Princess."

"I...I don't know what to say. It's so much to take in. I believe this isn't just a title, but a responsibility. A huge one at that, too. I want to understand that you're telling me that I really do deserve this. I just..don't believe I'm the right person that's suited to have the burden of a whole kingdom on my shoulders. I can't carry the weight, I can't protect anyone, not even my own mother! I'd fall and bring the rest of the mermaids down with me." Aika looked quite solemn at the moment, clutching the pendant with despair as more sour tears rolled down her face.

"Aika. You need you to believe in yourself. If there's anything you can do, ahem, will do, it's protecting and caring for the North Pacific kingdom. I believe in you. Stop thinking about what you can't do and start thinking about what you can do! I chose you because I believed in you, something I've constantly repeated in different ways."

Aika's grasp on the pendant softened, and she wiped her tears from her face with her wrist. She inhaled sharply and hung her head lowly. "I am so, so, so sorry," she apologized, "for all of the denial that I've been spitting in your face. I mean, any logical mermaid would've just taken the role with gratitude. But I...please know that I am so honored and thankful that you chose me."

Lucia smiled warmly, which she had done for the hundredth time. "And I am glad you are." Lucia looked around warily. "And speaking of which, I'd like to add that I finally got my point across. I have officially given my role as Pink Pearl Mermaid Princess to you. Your duty is to not only protect your kingdom, but to find the other six mermaid princesses and together, search for the Royal Pearl." Lucia noticed Aika's mouth open to ask questions, but the mermaid hushed her. "I am sorry, I can not explain anything further. I must continue on my mission. I wish the best of luck to you, Princess Aika."

As soon as she came, Lucia faded away after blowing an air kiss happily to Aika. The even more stunned, newly-crowned princess blinked fast, as if it were all a dream. It wasn't. She stared down at her pearl with her navy blue orbs. _I really am a princess. Princess- I mean, Lucia, just crowned me a princess! I have an enormous duty, _Aika thought, _fate must be real._

Glancing at her beloved pearl one more time, the mermaid swam on to tell Auri and Mana back at Pearl Piari of her new destiny. But hiding in the dark shadows was an enemy who couldn't wait to make the newly-crowned princess eternally suffer.

* * *

**THANK YOU ALL FOR READING! ~ CiciBear8 :)**


End file.
